Bitcoin price surges after details of Biden’s executive order on crypto leaked

Cryptocurrency figures praised the ‘constructive approach’ that focuses on innovation rather than strict regulation

US President Joe Biden at a meeting with Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen at the White House, 5 March, 2021 in Washington, DC. Yellen had recently commented that bitcoin was an ‘extremely inefficient’ way to conduct monetary transactions (Getty Images)

The price of bitcoin has shot up more than 10 per cent overnight after a draft executive order from US President Joe Biden was inadvertently published.

The cryptocurrency reached above $42,000 on Wednesday morning when a statement from Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen about the order appeared online. It has since been removed, but a cached copy states that the order would “support responsible innovation” in the space.

Crypto market analysts said the statement would be positive for the industry, as it appeared to focus on development and innovation rather than imposing strict regulations.

“Due to the increased concerns of Russia using crypto to evade sanctions, many were worried that the order will impose strict regulatory changes that will hinder the crypto industry,” Marcus Sotiriou, analyst at the UK based digital asset broker GlobalBlock, told The Independent.

“This clarity from the government level is a positive in the long run – institutions will hopefully have a deeper understanding of where they stand.”

Cameron Winklevoss, co-founder of the cryptocurrency exchange Gemini and an early investor in bitcoin, praised the “constructive approach” to crypto regulation.

Will Hamilton, head of trading and research at Trovio Capital Management, added: “An executive order summarizing the US government’s strategy for dealing with cryptocurrencies is set to be signed by President Biden this week.

“The ‘President’s Working Group’ US bank regulators, US Congress, and the FSOC have all been busy consulting with industry and recommending how to enhance the regulation of DeFi, stablecoins and cryptocurrencies. Biden’s order will announce how all that recent work is progressing, as well as addressing the potential security threats posed by use of digital assets. This will likely receive a high level of scrutiny, as concerns grow over Russia’s use of digital assets to avoid sanctions.”